A billionaire Silicon Valley venture capitalist has been condemned for "ghastly and disgraceful" comments after he compared criticism of America's rich to the persecution of Jews in Nazi Germany in the 1930s.

Tom Perkins, 66, wrote a letter to the Wall Street Journal, which was published, in which he likened the Occupy movement to Kristallnacht, the infamous pogrom of Nov 9-10, 1938.

In his letter titled "Progressive Kristallnacht Coming?" Mr Perkins said: "Writing from the epicentre of progressive thought, San Francisco, I would call attention to the parallels of fascist Nazi Germany to its war on its 'one per cent', namely its Jews, to the progressive war on the American one per cent, namely the rich.

"From the Occupy movement to the demonisation of the rich embedded in virtually every word of our local newspaper, the San Francisco Chronicle, I perceive a rising tide of hatred of the successful one per cent."

Mr Perkins cited the antipathy in San Francisco towards luxury "Google buses" that carry technology workers to their well paid jobs, and growing anger over rising house prices caused by wealthy buyers employed by internet companies.

"Kristallnacht was unthinkable in 1930; is its descendent 'progressive' radicalism unthinkable now?"

During Kristallnacht, translated as the Night of Broken Glass, Jewish shops were smashed, hundreds of synagogues were destroyed, 91 Jews were murdered and 30,000 arrested, with most of them sent to concentration camps.

Mr Perkins, a graduate of MIT and Harvard, was once married to the author Danielle Steel and he wrote a book called "Sex and the Single Zillionaire".

In 2006 he paid $150 million (£90.9m) for a super yacht called The Maltese Falcon.

He was a founder of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, a venture capital firm, and has sat on the boards of a string of high profile technology and media companies.

In a statement KPCB said he had not been involved with the company for years. It added: "We were shocked at his views and do not agree."

On Twitter, the San Francisco-based social media tool, users described the comments as "revolting" and ridiculed the businessman as a "rich idiot" living in a "serious rich dude bubble". The Los Angeles Times described the letter as "ghastly, vulgar and disgraceful".